Chicken making crackly grunt noise

[cstephens1987]

My 2.5 week old EE is making a very odd crackly kind of grunt noise for the last day or so. Occasionally it seems to coincide with a sneezy head shake/flick but not always as the chicks seems to be able to make it at will. It will go a minute or more without doing it and be chirping normal and then do it, then sometimes it seems to happen a lot or in the midst of normal chirping. It's not lethargic at all and seems otherwise completely fine and the same chick I've been watching grow for two weeks now, but I'm worried about a possible respiratory issue. Can they make these kinds of noises on purpose? It almost like like that low pitched crackly fry vocal that parrots do.

 

[azygous]

This bears watching. It could be a respiratory illness trying to take hold or a crop issue or a bit of bedding inhaled and caught in the larynx. Sneezing and coughing is an automatic response to try to dislodge it.

A lot of the time, if some bit of something is caught in the throat, it will work its way loose overnight as the chicken relaxes in sleep.

What are you using as bedding? Not cedar shavings by some chance? Or undried/untreated pine shavings?

 

[cstephens1987]

This bears watching. It could be a respiratory illness trying to take hold or a crop issue or a bit of bedding inhaled and caught in the larynx. Sneezing and coughing is an automatic response to try to dislodge it.

A lot of the time, if some bit of something is caught in the throat, it will work its way loose overnight as the chicken relaxes in sleep.

What are you using as bedding? Not cedar shavings by some chance? Or undried/untreated pine shavings?

Dried low dust flake pine shavings from TSC (white bag). I'll be keeping an eye on her (fingers crossed on that part) and hopefully it will clear itself up. Could it be she's trying to clear her throat or something? I've looked up sneezes and coughs and it doesn't sound like those. And most of the crackle posts seem tied to breathing but this is random and almost at will.

 

[azygous]

The way you describe the sound leads me to believe it's a particle of something lodged in the larynx. That causes intermittent weird noises as the air passes by the particle in the larynx, sort of like a reed instrument. Part of her sounds may be at will as she is conscious of the foreign bit stuck in there, and she is trying to dislodge it by doing what she's doing.

I wouldn't worry about it too much since it is likely so small as to not present a choking hazard or she'd be struggling to breathe. Eventually it will work itself out. I'd predict by morning you will no longer be hearing these sounds.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

My 2.5 week old EE is making a very odd crackly kind of grunt noise for the last day or so. Occasionally it seems to coincide with a sneezy head shake/flick but not always as the chicks seems to be able to make it at will. It will go a minute or more without doing it and be chirping normal and then do it, then sometimes it seems to happen a lot or in the midst of normal chirping. It's not lethargic at all and seems otherwise completely fine and the same chick I've been watching grow for two weeks now, but I'm worried about a possible respiratory issue. Can they make these kinds of noises on purpose? It almost like like that low pitched crackly fry vocal that parrots do.

Can you take video? Post it to youtube, provide us a link.

 

[cstephens1987]

Can you take video? Post it to youtube, provide us a link.

 

[cstephens1987]

If you listen closely it starts doing it off and on about 20 seconds into the video in the midst of its other chirps.

 

[Eggcessive]

That sounds like crackles or rales, where there is fluid in the small airways. It sounds like the chick may have a respiratory infection. Those can be from viruses or bacteria. They can get them from a carrier bird, sometimes through a hatching egg from the parents (mycoplasma or MG,) and it can also be spread by people or shoes, if they have been around birds who are carriers. Wild birds may also be carriers. Infectious bronchitis is a common infection, followed by mycoplasma or MG. These signs may show up around 2-4 weeks.

Hopefully, though, it is an environmental problem from dust or ammonia odors. Not enough ventialtion, too much heat, dust in feed or bedding, and wet bedding that may be soiled or moldy are some things to look for.

The chick does not seem to gasping or looking bad, so you could watch it. But if it gets worse or you see another one acting lethargic or having sneezes or crackles, then you may want to get antibiotic from your vet. The only one available to most people in feed stores is injectable Tylan 50 which can be given orally after removing the needle from the syringe. Dosage is 0.1 ml for a baby chick, given orally 3 times a day for 3-5 days. Call ahead since some feed stores may not have it. It is a cattle antibiotic used in chickens.

 

[cstephens1987]

That sounds like crackles or rales, where there is fluid in the small airways. It sounds like the chick may have a respiratory infection. Those can be from viruses or bacteria. They can get them from a carrier bird, sometimes through a hatching egg from the parents (mycoplasma or MG,) and it can also be spread by people or shoes, if they have been around birds who are carriers. Wild birds may also be carriers. Infectious bronchitis is a common infection, followed by mycoplasma or MG. These signs may show up around 2-4 weeks.

Hopefully, though, it is an environmental problem from dust or ammonia odors. Not enough ventialtion, too much heat, dust in feed or bedding, and wet bedding that may be soiled or moldy are some things to look for.

The chick does not seem to gasping or looking bad, so you could watch it. But if it gets worse or you see another one acting lethargic or having sneezes or crackles, then you may want to get antibiotic from your vet. The only one available to most people in feed stores is injectable Tylan 50 which can be given orally after removing the needle from the syringe. Dosage is 0.1 ml for a baby chick, given orally 3 times a day for 3-5 days. Call ahead since some feed stores may not have it. It is a cattle antibiotic used in chickens.

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Thanks. I'll be keeping an eye on it. So far that one is the only one of the fifteen that has made that noise that I've seen.

 

[cstephens1987]

Well that chick did get better over the next 24 hours or so and I have not heard any more from her, however unfortunately my runty little barnevelder appears to have the same thing going on this morning. I'll be keeping an eye on him but it seems I may need antibiotic after all. Is there one that can be fed to the whole flock or is this something you just chase one at a time? I really don't want to have to cull anybody if I don't have to.